International Plastic Modelers' Society / USA

International Plastic Modelers' Society / USA

IPMS/USA

IPMS/USA

OTB 245: Scale effect.

On the Bench Podcast - Fri, 08/28/2026 - 22:03

Episode 245 we joined by Rob Riv and John "Spud" Murphy to talk about "Scale Effect"…..it is a really great conversation.

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Categories: Podcast

Video build pt.II: Tamiya RSO/01 - Painting, weathering & finishing the kit

The Modelling News - Fri, 08/28/2026 - 08:29
The second part of Clayton Ockebry's build of Tamiya's new 1/35th scale RSO/01 kit today. See in photos & video how he transforms this from primer to finish in Part II.Read on... »
Categories: News

Two Great Shows with a Side of ARMA Hawk 81-A: September Model Show Spotlight

Plastic Model Mojo - Thu, 08/27/2026 - 21:00

The best model shows are not just contests, they are proof that a hobby can feel like a community. We’re back with Model Show Spotlight to share what’s coming next after Nationals, starting with our own Military Modelers Club of Louisville (MMCL) and the practical choices that make a local plastic model show run like a well-oiled machine.

Alex Restrepo joins us to break down how MMCL pulled off a raffle that scaled up smoothly at the IPMS Nationals, from sponsored closeout kits to a barcode-based system that scans, projects, and posts winning ticket numbers online. We talk volunteer coordination, contingency planning, and why convenience for ticket buyers is not a “nice to have,” it’s what keeps the room moving. Then we hit the details for the MMCL show at Paroquet Springs in Shepherdsville, Kentucky on September 26, including registration timing, vendor support, nearby hotels and food, and the club’s push to welcome youth builders and fast-growing genres like Gunpla.

MMCL Show Info

Next, Doug Reed returns to preview the Oregon Modelers Jamboree in Albany, Oregon at the Linn County Expo Center on September 12, which also hosts the IPMS Region 7 contest. The Jamboree approach leans into an expo feel: club tables, demos, display-only space, and social time that makes the event more than “enter, shop, wait, leave.”

Oregon Modelers Jamboree

We close with quick early bench impressions of Arma’s pre release Hawk 81-A2,  P-40B kit and what we’re seeing so far.

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Categories: Podcast

MiniArt's 35th scale "German Tank Crew Winter Uniform, 1939-41"

The Modelling News - Thu, 08/27/2026 - 07:54
MiniArt's new "35th scale "German Tank Crew Winter Uniform, 1939-41" features four figures & a sprue of weapons & equipment. See about the soldiers & the set in our preview...Read on... »
Categories: News

The non-profit UK based group known as the Great War Aviation Society publishes their journal, Cross & Cockade International, four times a year. Issues are available in English as printed [Softbound, A4 (8.27” x 11.69”), 80 pages plus a centerfold, as...

Landing Page Reviews - Thu, 08/27/2026 - 00:00

The non-profit UK based group known as the Great War Aviation Society publishes their journal, Cross & Cockade International, four times a year. Issues are available in English as printed [Softbound, A4 (8.27” x 11.69”), 80 pages plus a centerfold, as well as digital copies (or both). A new magazine, Contact!, is now available in both print and digital download. Society also provides a free newsletter (sign up on their website) and occasionally publish WWI themed books like the Sopwith Dolphin monograph, which I reviewed earlier for the IPMS-USA. This UK Journal is the sister of the US Journal, Over The Front. The Great War Aviation Society also hosts a lecture series available through Zoom. If interested, you will need to register early as the call is limited in attendance.

During the latter part of World War 2, as it lost its iron grip on the skies, Germany began to rely more and more on antiaircraft guns and weapons as its first line of defense against marauding Allied aircraft. What this meant in practical terms is...

Landing Page Reviews - Thu, 08/27/2026 - 00:00

During the latter part of World War 2, as it lost its iron grip on the skies, Germany began to rely more and more on antiaircraft guns and weapons as its first line of defense against marauding Allied aircraft. What this meant in practical terms is that they had to range far and wide to find suitable vehicles to create mobile mounts for all sorts of weaponry, putting them on virtually anything that could move and handle the weight. Of course, eventually this expedient rigging became unsustainable, but not without cost to the allies.

Preview: Special Hobby kits for September

The Modelling News - Wed, 08/26/2026 - 10:01
Special Hobby has several releases slated for September. Some are new, some (re)newed. See them in our preview...Read on... »
Categories: News

Episode 145: David Hobbs + Knowing Your Limitations

Plastic Posse Podcast - Wed, 08/26/2026 - 00:00

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Grant is out this episode but the rest of the gang is here and raring to go! Jensen leads us into a discussion point about "knowing your limitations" and we sit down and interview Model Designer, Reference Expert, Museum Vehicle Restoration Technician and Historian David Hobbs, a friend of the Posse to talk about his career and the projects he has worked on. 

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Categories: Podcast

1/48 Hobby Craft/Hobby Boss F8F-1 Bearcat

Forums - Tue, 08/25/2026 - 21:52
I started this project with the intention of building the 1/48 Hobby Boss F8F-1 kit. But early in construction, I ruined the lower wings trying to install resin gear bays. I ended up pulling a Hobby Craft F8F-1 kit from the stash, and elected to use the Hobby Craft cockpit, wings, stabilizers and fuselage, and the Hobby Boss prop, cowl, landing gear, gear doors, canopy rear deck and roll-over brace. I used markings from Starfighter Decals that depict an F8F-1, Bureau Number 94759, attached to the Naval Air Facility/Naval Ordinance Test Station at Inyokern, Califoirnia in 1950. This Bearcat was used for HVAR (high velocity aircraft rocket) testing. Here's a link to a full build article: https://imodeler.com/2026/08/1-48-hobby-craft-hobby-boss-f8f-1-bearcat/

MiniArt's new 48th scale Focke-Wulf Fw 190D-9. JV 44 “Sachsenberg Schwarm” - Basic Kit

The Modelling News - Tue, 08/25/2026 - 06:27
Art, features & sprues of the most colourful of MiniArt's 1/48th scale Focke-Wulf Fw 190D-9's - the JV 44 “Sachsenberg Schwarm” "Basic Kit". Check it out in our preview...Read on... »
Categories: News

Preview: 1/35th scale German Schützenpanzer Puma from Das Werk

The Modelling News - Mon, 08/24/2026 - 20:46
Das Werk adds new decals, workable track links & roof armour to the RFM Schützenpanzer Puma kit. We look at the package in our preview...Read on... »
Categories: News

ANTOINETTE 1908 FLIGHT SIMULATOR in 1/48

Forums - Mon, 08/24/2026 - 17:37
Hi ! Here another project I have done in the past , of course it's scratchbuilt , if you like to view more pics of this prject , I have set-up an GOOGLE page for it, just follow this link: https://photos.app.goo.gl/yuQutHmNnZNFEhdY7 Enjoy ! Jmarc

Preview: ICM's six August releases...

The Modelling News - Mon, 08/24/2026 - 08:52
A Hudson & shades, a big but small Tarhe, a big bucket, high firefighters & a daring heist are the subjects of ICM's August releases. We update you with the contents, CADS, history & artwork in our preview...Read on... »
Categories: News

Due to the nature of our armament, and the tactics in which we shall perfect ourselves, we shall be called upon to carry out operations of far-reaching military importance, and we shall habitually go into action when the need is immediate and extreme....

Landing Page Reviews - Sun, 08/23/2026 - 00:00

Due to the nature of our armament, and the tactics in which we shall perfect ourselves, we shall be called upon to carry out operations of far-reaching military importance, and we shall habitually go into action when the need is immediate and extreme. Let me call your attention to the fact that our badge is the great American eagle. This is a fitting emblem for a division that will crush its enemies by falling upon them like a thunderbolt from the skies.

The 101st Airborne Division…has no history, but it has a rendezvous with destiny.

This book contains 82 pages, 84 b/w photos, 32 color profiles, 1 color map, and 6 tables. It covers the USSR’s military aviation in the Baltics in 1941. It is number 63 in the Europe at War series and is Volume one of three.After beating Finland in the...

Landing Page Reviews - Sun, 08/23/2026 - 00:00

This book contains 82 pages, 84 b/w photos, 32 color profiles, 1 color map, and 6 tables. It covers the USSR’s military aviation in the Baltics in 1941. It is number 63 in the Europe at War series and is Volume one of three.

After beating Finland in the Winter War, the Soviets had also taken over part of Poland as well as Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania. The false sense of superiority this instilled would come to light when the Germans invaded the USSR in Operation Barbarossa! Through the author’s access to many heretofore restricted files, especially those from the former Soviet Union, he can give a thorough accounting of situation.

Produced by UMM-USA (Unique Master Models-USA), these three shapes are part of a larger catalog that contains an extensive number of profiles and sizes made from extruded lead. The shapes and various sizes are useful to the modeler in a variety of...

Landing Page Reviews - Sun, 08/23/2026 - 00:00

Produced by UMM-USA (Unique Master Models-USA), these three shapes are part of a larger catalog that contains an extensive number of profiles and sizes made from extruded lead. The shapes and various sizes are useful to the modeler in a variety of applications. I’ve been using the Round Lead Wire (RLW) 0.2 as vertical railing sections for quite a few years. The Half Round lead wire (HRLW) and Flat Lead Wire (FLW), are all shapes that are nicely extruded and have the same profile dimension throughout with measurements bearing out the high quality of the extrusion process.

This is part of a series of books by Helion on Technology and War. The book is unique in that on many of the pages they have printed bar codes that can be used to view online videos. This is a great idea, and I loved the ability to watch the videos as...

Landing Page Reviews - Sun, 08/23/2026 - 00:00

This is part of a series of books by Helion on Technology and War. The book is unique in that on many of the pages they have printed bar codes that can be used to view online videos. This is a great idea, and I loved the ability to watch the videos as I read the book.

This book covers the growth and use of Combat cameras from World War two up to 1991, it is lavishly illustrated with many great pictures, many of which are stunning.

The book has a lot of content which provides a lot of history and background to the camera unit and the way they worked and development the use of cameras in the US Air Force.

It was interesting to see the involvement of Hollywood In the early days of the program. Also, how technology and its uses grow in war time and in peace time.

David Doyle's book on the German Light Armored Cars of WWII : Sd.Kfz. 221, 222, 223, 247, 260, and 261 is one of the latest entries in the 'Legends of Warfare' series with entries in Ground, Naval, and Aviation. Schiffer Publishing’s The Legends of...

Landing Page Reviews - Sun, 08/23/2026 - 00:00

David Doyle's book on the German Light Armored Cars of WWII : Sd.Kfz. 221, 222, 223, 247, 260, and 261 is one of the latest entries in the 'Legends of Warfare' series with entries in Ground, Naval, and Aviation. Schiffer Publishing’s The Legends of Warfare series has expanded rapidly since its 2017 debut in the market with now over 100 titles released. This hard cover series covers a wide variety of monographs at a good price point. Catch up with Schiffer Publishing on Facebook.

The Third US Army conquered the Brittany peninsula by August 1944, and isolated German forces into Lorient, Brest and St Nazaire. The strategic objective, stated above, was the capture of the ports and their harbors. The Third US Army’s role in the...

Landing Page Reviews - Sun, 08/23/2026 - 00:00

The Third US Army conquered the Brittany peninsula by August 1944, and isolated German forces into Lorient, Brest and St Nazaire. The strategic objective, stated above, was the capture of the ports and their harbors. The Third US Army’s role in the first phases of this battle were covered in a previous book in this series, The Battle for Brittany Then and Now, The Third US Army First Battle. On 5 September 1944, the Ninth US Army took command of the VIII Corps with the mission of taking Brest and, with it, Brittany.

Brest featured largely in the Allied plans for the capture of Normandy. Once the beachhead was secured, ports were necessary for the continuation of offensive operations to dislodge the Germans from France. From the introduction,

Preview: MiniArt's 1/35th-scale Raupenschlepper OST RSO/01 w/Trailer SD.ANH Ost 1.5t

The Modelling News - Sat, 08/22/2026 - 11:25
MiniArt pairs their RSO/01 with the 1.5t SD. ANH trailer in a great-looking kit that will claim its own hearts. We have art, features & CADs in our preview...Read on... »
Categories: News